For Amtrak, short is best

Short-distance routes are driving increased ridership, report says

Published 9:11 pm, Thursday, February 28, 2013

Amtrak travelers queue up for their trip to New York City at the Amtrak Station in Rensselaer, N.Y. Oct. 11, 2012. (Skip Dickstein/Times Union)

Amtrak travelers queue up for their trip to New York City at the Amtrak Station in Rensselaer, N.Y. Oct. 11, 2012. (Skip Dickstein/Times Union)

Photo: Skip Dickstein

For Amtrak, short is best

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RENSSELAER — A new Brookings Institution report says Amtrak's growth in passengers has been mainly on short-distance routes, and that it loses a disproportionate amount of money on its long-distance services.

The report, "A New Alignment: Strengthening America's Commitment to Passenger Rail," said Amtrak has had a 55 percent jump in its number of passengers since 1997, and that its short-haul routes posted operating income of $47 million, even as long-distance trains lost $614 million.

The passenger railroad carried a record 31.2 million passengers last year.

Many of the long-distance trains operate just once a day or even less frequently.

Meanwhile, many states already provide operating subsidies to short-haul routes, and federal legislation will require such assistance from all states later this year, the Brookings report said.

The report said the Capital Region's three passenger rail stations — Albany/Rensselaer, Schenectady and Saratoga Springs — had 862,737 riders in 2012, a 39 percent increase from 620,353 in 1997.

The bulk of the earnings on short-haul routes come from the two services on the Northeast Corridor between Boston and Washington, D.C., the Acela and so-called regional services.

The state-supported Adirondack service between New York City and Montreal via Albany showed a surplus of $1.3 million, when state support of $7.6 million is included.

But Amtrak lost $31 million in 2012 on train operations between New York City and Albany, and $5.9 million on trains between Albany, Niagara Falls and Toronto, according to Brookings. None of those services currently receive state support.

The Acela, meanwhile, is a strong performer. Amtrak owns the Northeast Corridor, which runs between Boston and Washington, so it doesn't have to pay other railroads for the right to use them. And it offers frequent service with high-speed trains.

Revenue last year totaled $510.3 million, while costs were $331.6 million, producing operating income of $178.8 million. The expenses don't include depreciation or other capital costs.

The report suggests that Amtrak and the states:

• Share operating costs and other responsibilities on longer-distance routes;

• Promote intermodalism, where passengers can easily transfer between planes and trains, or trains and buses, for example;

• Create dedicated funding sources;

• Complete a national rail plan and promote multistate agreements on operating trains.